Tiredness, exhaustion, lethargy, there are many words for feeling fatigued and there are even more reasons why you might be experiencing fatigue. We can easily group all of the various reasons into two groups, lifestyle and condition. There are multiple factors within both the lifestyle and condition groupings that might be causing your fatigue, but the only group you have control over is your lifestyle. The conditions, unfortunately, are out of your control and you will need medical help. Let’s focus on the lifestyle factors this time and discuss the conditional group later. With no further adieu, here are the top reasons why you are experiencing fatigue in your life.
Lifestyle
Your lifestyle is ultimately up to you, it is how you choose to live your life every single day. There are some lifestyle choices that you can easily change, while others are very difficult. The top lifestyle choices that cause fatigue are:
- diet
- use of drugs and/or alcohol
- excess physical activity
- lack of physical activity
- jet lag or lack of sleep
- certain medications
Diet
The food and drinks you choose to ingest to fuel your body play a big role in your energy levels, attentiveness, and whether or not you experience fatigue. If you eat unhealthy foods, your energy levels are going to be low because your diet isn’t balanced with the correct nutrients. You might want to make it a goal to eat according to the guidelines set by health institutions. Caffeine dependence is a big factor that can effect your energy levels. Caffeine gives you an initial burst of energy, but it wears off and you experience what’s called a crash. In order to overcome that crash, most people make up for the lost energy by consuming more caffeine. You end up making your body dependent on caffeine for energy instead of using the energy that comes naturally from burning calories, sugars, and carbohydrates. By changing your diet, you should notice more energy throughout the entire day over time.
Drugs and Alcohol
Drugs and alcohol are just not beneficial to your body in any way, especially if you abuse them frequently. Drugs and alcohol inhibit a lot of the normal functions of your body and brain and can affect your mood and energy levels. If you need help quitting drugs or alcohol, there are plenty of resources and groups out there to help you overcome this challenge. A resource for drug addiction can be found here and a resource for alcohol addiction can be found here.
Physical Activity
Physical activity is very beneficial for your overall health and especially beneficial for your energy levels. Even though there are plenty of benefits that come from physical activity, too much or too little of it actually compromises your health and energy levels. Exercising too much will put your body under too much strain and stress and you feel exhausted all of the time. Instead of using energy for your mental health, your body will use more energy for muscle recovery, leaving you feeling fatigued. Too little exercise will make you experience fatigue because your metabolism will slow down. Knowing your physical limits is very important in knowing how much exercise you really need. You will only come to know this through exercising and getting to know how far you can push yourself.
Sleep
Sleep is possibly the most important factor in determining your daily energy levels. Getting the right amount of sleep varies for your stage in life. Children need about 10 hours of sleep, teenagers need about 9 hours, and adults need between 7.5 hours to 9 hours. These are just estimates and can vary from person to person. Not getting enough sleep can result in fatigue, anxiety, depression, and other mental disorders. The benefits of sleep far outweigh any good that can come from not getting enough sleep.
Medication
There are some medications that can make you feel drowsy. Antihistamines and some pain medications are the most common medications that effect energy levels and can leave you feeling fatigued. If you have to take these medications, it is best to take them at night when you are going to bed so that you don’t feel drowsy during the day when you need your energy the most!
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